Mehsana

The Mehsana Thikana of the Baghela (Vaghela) dynasty represents a significant chapter in the feudal history of northern Gujarat. Following the fall of the main Vaghela Dynasty of Patan after the defeat of Karna Deva II by the Delhi Sultanate forces in 1304, various cadet branches of this Rajput clan dispersed and carved out local estates, or Thikanas, across the region to maintain their political influence. While the establishment of Mehsana town is traditionally attributed to Mehsaji Chavda in 1358, Vaghela Rajputs established substantial landholding rights and local rulership (Girasdari) in the surrounding territories. Over the centuries, these Vaghela chieftains navigated shifting political tides under the Gujarat Sultanate, the Mughal Empire, and later the Maratha Gaekwads of Baroda, preserving their heritage and local authority well into the British colonial era as recorded in regional annals and documented by the Mehsana District Administration.